2014 (1) TMI 1884 - AT - Income Tax

Disallowance u/s 14A - Reasonable allocation of expenditure - As argued by assessee entire expenditure debited by assessee in its profits and loss account could not be said to have been incurred only for earning exempt income under the Act - HELD THAT - Reasonable allocation of expenditure has to be made which can be attributed to the income which is chargeable to tax particularly bank interest income of ₹ 33.80 crores as against dividend income of ₹ 12.07 crores (approximately). Expenditure of ₹ 4,77,890/- as worked out by assessee, the details of which are mentioned by AO at page 2 of the assessment order, is reasonable to make disallowance u/s 14A with Rule 8D. Accordingly, we restrict the disallowance to ₹ 4,77,890/- by reversing the orders of authorities below and thus, allow the grounds of appeal taken by assessee.

Issues: Disallowance under section 14A of the Income Tax Act, 1961

Analysis:
1. The appellant, a Non-Banking Finance Company, contested the disallowance of &8377; 11,60,083 made by the Assessing Officer (AO) under section 14A of the Income Tax Act for the assessment year 2008-09.
2. The AO applied Rule 8D of the Income Tax Rules to calculate the disallowance, resulting in a higher amount than what the appellant voluntarily disallowed.
3. The appellant argued before the First Appellate Authority that a reasonable allocation of expenditure should be made in proportion to the income not forming part of the total income.
4. The ld. CIT(A) upheld the AO's decision, noting that the expenditure incurred by the appellant was related to earning dividend income only, despite mentioning that if there were other incomes requiring administrative efforts and expenses, a different allocation might be necessary.
5. During the appeal before the Appellate Tribunal, the appellant presented details of various expenses incurred, such as auditor remuneration, professional fees, and sundry expenses, to support the contention that the entire expenditure was not solely for earning exempt income.
6. The Tribunal agreed with the appellant that a reasonable allocation of expenditure should be made, considering the nature of expenses and the income shown by the appellant.
7. After evaluating the facts and circumstances, the Tribunal found the appellant's voluntary disallowance of &8377; 4,77,890 to be reasonable and decided to restrict the disallowance under section 14A to this amount, reversing the decisions of the lower authorities.
8. Consequently, the Tribunal allowed the grounds of appeal raised by the appellant and ruled in favor of the appellant, allowing the appeal against the disallowance under section 14A.
9. The Tribunal pronounced the order on 22nd January 2014, allowing the appeal of the assessee.

This detailed analysis of the judgment highlights the key arguments, decisions, and reasoning involved in the case regarding the disallowance under section 14A of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

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